While eastern Ohio’s oil and natural-gas boom has garnered most of the attention in the past year, coal remains an important part of the economy of the Tuscarawas Valley.

In 2011, coal mine employees in Tuscarawas County earned $11.3 million in wages and salary payments. In Carroll County, the number was $3.5 million; in Coshocton County, $4.8 million.

But all those numbers pale in comparison to the $22.1 million earned by miners in Harrison County last year.

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources recently released its 2011 Report on Ohio Mineral Industries, noting that the state mined 26.9 million tons of coal that year, valued at $1.1 billion.

Harrison County ranked second in the state for production, behind Belmont County. Tuscarawas County placed sixth.

According to the report, Tuscarawas County had 14 mines — one deep mine and 13 surface mines. Harrison County had eight mines — one deep and seven surface.

Coshocton had one surface mine, and Carroll County had one surface and one deep mine.

“It’s a large industry for Ohio, and southeastern Ohio for sure,” said Mike Carey, chairman of the Ohio Coal Association, adding, “Harrison County is a huge coal producer.”

But he is concerned about the future of the industry.

Since 2009, coal production nationwide has dropped by one-third, which Carey attributed to new federal environmental regulations and loss of market share to low-priced natural gas.

“The forecast for 2012 is unchanged from 2011,” he said. “We see the market as the same. And there are a lot of federal regulations coming down the pike that could be detrimental to coal-fired power plants.”

The ODNR report also showed the uptick in the number of oil and gas wells drilled locally as energy companies moved into Ohio to tap into the Utica Shale play.

In 2010, nine wells were drilled in Tuscarawas County. That number doubled to 18 in 2011.

The increase was not as steep in Carroll County, where the oil and gas boom has been going on longer. In 2010, 13 wells were drilled. The number increased to 15 in 2011.

Only two wells were drilled in Harrison County in 2011.

Producers have until the end of March to report 2012 numbers to ODNR.

Overall, though, gas production is down because prices are down, said Sarah Tipka of A.W. Tipka Oil & Gas Inc. of Dover. It’s especially tough for companies operating outside the Utica Shale play, she added.

“Everybody’s hoping the Utica will be a fantastic play,” she said. “All indications are that it will.”

According to the Ohio Oil & Gas Energy Education Program, Tuscarawas County has 3,153 producing wells. The county annually produces 7.1 billion cubic feet of natural gas and 226,563 barrels of crude oil. Landowners earn $6.5 million annually in royalties.

The Tipka family has been involved in the oil and gas industry for decades. Her father-in-law, William N. Tipka, helped to drill the second well in Ohio using the hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, method. That was in Hartville in 1954.

Page 2 of 2 -
Today, most area companies have to partner with others to drill a horizontal well to tap into the Utica Shale because of the high cost, Tipka said. Her company has an interest in a Utica well in Stark County that has cost close to $12 million to drill.

While natural gas prices are down, crude oil prices are up, she said. “We’re happy to have oil prices where they are.”

But she has also seen fluctuations in the price of oil over the years.